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What Can Khris Middleton Learn From Dwyane Wade?

By Adam McGee

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The off-season gives NBA players a rare opportunity to mix and work out with some of their peers. It can be an incredibly beneficial experience to all parties involved, but with the rigors and travelling involved in the regular NBA schedule such meetings are few and far between.

This week, the Milwaukee Bucks shooting guard Khris Middleton got the chance to have such a workout though, as he spent some time with one of the greatest shooting guards of his generation, the Miami Heat’s Dwyane Wade.

Wade captioned the photo:

"Great workout today with@k_mid22 … he’s a problem and has a real thirst for knowledge.. this league is about more then just competing..we all have a job to pass along what we’ve learned for the better of the game we all love.."

Middleton and Wade worked out alongside renowned NBA skills trainer Stanley Remy, who also works with former Buck Brandon Knight. They weren’t the only Bucks connections either, as judging by tweets from the team’s account, Greivis Vasquez has also present and working hard.

As nice as it is for Bucks fans to catch a glimpse of Middleton working out with one of the team’s newest signings, it’s the fact that he was rubbing shoulders with D-Wade that should really pique people’s interest.

Wade has been one of the league’s best players for a number of years now, and (away from the fashion stakes) there aren’t many guys who Bucks fans should be happier to see become a mentor for their young swingman.

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There are a number of reasons for that. Firstly, from a basketball standpoint Wade honed his skills to the point where he was comfortably one of the most dominant two-way guards in the NBA.

Without ever truly developing a reliable three-point stroke, Wade has been one of the league’s most prolific scorers for over a decade now. Just under 19,000 points for his career to date is a testament to that. On top of that, Wade has always been a smart defender, in what’s perhaps the most unspoken aspect of his play.

From a skills perspective there’s no question of what Wade could teach Middleton, but there’s two aspects of his character in particular that Milwaukee could do a lot worse than have passed down to their No.22.

Wade is the face of the Miami Heat franchise, but he has shown a humility, selflessness and understanding over the years that has allowed him to secede that role to those around him, and more specifically to players who came into the organization effectively as outsiders.

When Shaquille O’Neal came to South Beach, Wade shared the limelight for the good of his team and it resulted in a championship.

Years later, Wade embraced LeBron James and Chris Bosh with the same sort of trust, and that brought four straight finals appearance for the Heat and two more championship rings.

Throughout that time Wade has continued to focus on winning, and been 100 percent loyal to his organization. The Bucks are lucky that in Middleton they already have a low key, team first young superstar, but if he was to listen to Wade, and follow in his footsteps in a leadership capacity that could only benefit the organization further.

Wade won his titles by doing what was best for his team, and by teaming up with and trusting those who shared similar basketball philosophies. If Middleton can embrace his role alongside guys like Jabari Parker, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Greg Monroe and Michael Carter-Williams, well then hopefully he’ll be able to get himself some championship jewellery like Wade has also.

Next: Last Year's Milwaukee Bucks Weaknesses: Turnovers

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